(Garden City, KS) (westernkansasnews.com)

The U.S. Senate has passed an amendment by a Kansas Republican to the Farm Bill that will ensure growing western Kansas communities like Garden City remain classified as rural and retain eligibility for USDA grant and loan programs.

Senator Jerry Moran says that as a result of slight population shifts in the 2010 Census, some communities formerly considered “rural” would no longer going to be eligible for assistance from some Rural Development programs starting October 1^st.  Moran’s amendment will preserve the “rural” standing and eligibility for funds for all communities, like Garden City, with a population between 10,000 and 35,000 that remain rural in character.